Seedings are what they are, and for two of Lehigh University's best wrestlers, the seeds they've drawn will put them through a meat grinder at the 2012 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships from Thursday through Saturday at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.

Not that any draw is easy at nationals, but there are difficult draws and alarming draws.

Returning 285-pound champion Zach Rey, with just two losses on the season, drew the No. 4 seed, meaning he is on a collision course to meet perennial foe Ryan Flores of American in the semifinals should both win to that point.

Flores and Rey have split six matches evenly, with Flores' three wins all for the EIWA title. Rey beat Flores for the national title last year.

Robert Hamlin, the national runner-up at 184 in Philadelphia last year, drew the No. 2 seed. Should he win, and others win along the way, he'll meet Navy's Luke Rebertus (Hamlin is 2-3 lifetime against Rebertus, both wins coming this season) in the second round. And Hamlin would meet either returning national champion Quentin Wright (No. 6 seed) or Cornell's Steve Bosak (who handed Hamlin his only loss this season) in the semifinals.

"The only thing I've been given is my first round match [against Kent's Casey Newburg]," Hamlin reasoned before leaving for St. Louis. "At nationals, there are always so many upsets that you can't afford to look ahead."

That will be the mantra this week for Lehigh's eight-man contingent looking to make noise at nationals this week.

While Lehigh's best seeded wrestlers received tough draws, just about every match at nationals is a tough one. But for Rey and Hamlin, should they advance, their semifinal opponents will be rematches from the EIWA finals.

"I didn't put myself in a position where I could make my own seed, and now I'm in the top half of the bracket," Rey said. "I don't really care. In order to win nationals, you have to win five matches, and in some cases six, so I have to go out there and win against whoever is in those matches. I'm going out there looking to have some fun in my last season."

Hamlin said it's not good to look ahead.

"There is no way of knowing who you'll have in the quarters or semis," Hamlin said. "Right now, most of the preparation is mental. We've done the physical work. Lifting more or getting in extra sprints isn't going to do much. I'm trying to get right in my mind, get my confidence high and think about the positives from the season."

Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro is proud of the group he's taking to St. Louis.

"We're excited," Santoro said. "You have to be ready to wrestle. The most important thing to worry about is that first-round match, and I think all our guys are looking forward to that."

Rey, Hatchett, Kennedy and Tanen are seniors. Tanen, from Souderton, qualified for nationals based on his placing at EIWAs despite a 7-15 record.

"He said he's not going out there just to go out there," Santoro said. "He's going out there to win some matches."

Beckman, Dutton and Welsh also are capable of making noise. Beckman had a sluggish start to the season at 125. Because he started to physically grow during the season, the coaches allowed him to move up to 133, where he has excelled.

Dutton started the season with a skin infection, then suffered a concussion in his second match back.

Welsh broke into the lineup later in the season and has been the model of consistency.

"Shane could well be the sleeper of the tournament for us," Santoro said.

Still, both Hamlin and Rey will be hard-pressed to make a repeat trip to Saturday night's championship finals, which will be telecast live on ESPN.

"We have a tough team heading into nationals," Rey said. "I feel we have a good enough team to place very high. We're not only shooting for multiple All-Americans, but multiple national champions, and I think we have a great shot to accomplish both."